Friday, June 20, 2008

I credit the ACFW conferences with my publishing career. I met my current agent at an ACFW conference, and I met my current editor at an ACFW conference, even before she became an editor!

Most writers balk at the cost, and I won’t lie, it’s not cheap. Plus you have to factor in the cost of the hotel room and airfare (and can I get an amen at how ridiculous the airfare prices are now???).

But for me, because I felt truly called by God to write Christian fiction, the cost was worth it. I knew I needed to attend the workshops and talk to both other writers and industry professionals.

I didn’t think of it as “networking”—I thought of it as meeting people as excited about writing as I was. I wanted to meet other writers and “talk shop” with someone who could respond both coherently and with passion. (When I talk writing with Captain Caffeine, he tries to follow me, but usually his eyes glaze over, poor guy.)

I wanted a chance to learn from editors and agents about the business side of writing and to gather information about the Christian book market.

Conferences are extremely valuable, and ACFW does its best to ensure members go to a conference and know other attendees. They don’t want anyone to go and not know anyone there.

That’s why ACFW encourages an active main email loop, so people can interact virtually with each other and recognize each others’ names.

ACFW also has regional and local chapters so people can get to know one another via regional eloops or in-person chapter meetings before the conference, so that they have people to look for and talk to.

At the conference, there are lots of informal gatherings like the Chocolate Party for people to meet and greet in a casual, non-stressful situation.

The dinner tables (usually round tables that seat about 10) are also great places for people to meet in a casual, intimate setting. I’ve met many neat people who happened to sit next to me at dinner.

Also, I believe that most ACFW members truly care that first-timers have a good time, and I always see members going out of their way to chat with someone who looks unsure or is sitting alone.

I hope to see you writers at the ACFW conference this year! I’ll be presenting the awards for the Genesis contest at the Saturday night banquet!

1 comment
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Hey Camy! I was perusing your list to remind myself when I'd be posting my own walk down the acfw memory lane when I couldn't find me. Lol...but I did more digging and found that I'll be talking about the conference on June 30.

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